[Linux-Discussion] why we use open source
- From: John Madden <weez@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <linux-discussion@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 17 Dec 2001 14:11:39 -0500 (EST)
It's things like this that make me proud to be in an IS field where I get
to implement and support open source solutions.
Wietse, the developer of Postfix (this email and all others from FreeLists
brought to you by Postfix, incidentally) said this on postfix-users about
a supposedly-improved queue manager:
"The question is not *how* the code works. That part [the developer] has
explained."
"The question is not *if* the code works. That can be tested."
"The questions *why* the code works. That will reveal if the code
will always take reasonable action, even when something unreasonable
happens."
It's simple enough for us to say "well, of course, that's how we should
always approach a problem," yet profound enough for us (well, me, at
least) to say "wow, if only I could be that great a computer scientist."
And this is why the host of open source products are and always will be
the best available. It's not a matter of "based on the best technology
available, built with 4 billion in R&D," it's a matter of "I sat down and
found out why I couldn't break this particular algorithm, and that's why I
chose it over my own code."
Let us all aspire to uphold this ideal...
John
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